Subj: THE BOX Part Seven
Date: 5/22/00 1:04:19 PM Central Daylight Time
From: N.E. Collins

It took no time at all for Edith and Edward Collins to bring an abrupt halt to anymore public display of open hostility to the Collin's family. They simply told the local clergymen and town officials that they would remove not only their name from the town's name, but also any further and future financial support. All angered talk of "storming the castle" and overthrowing the "evil" Collin's family ceased. Not that there still weren't those who grumbled in private.

The gypsy, Magda, strolled lazily down the semi-dark corridors of the great house. She had just finished a long reading with Edith Collins who had just left the country for an extended European vacation. Edith had been accompanied by her grand daughter,Judith and three servants. Magda was happily jangling the coins she had received in payment for her services. She turned the corner and almost ran right into Virginia Semple who drew back with a start!

"Oh! You startled me!" Virginia leaned up against the wall to catch her breath. Magda had taken it all rather calmly so she lied in response. "I knew I was about to "run" into you." She chuckled low.

Virginia looked perplexed. "How did you know?"

Magda said with a sneer in her smile, "How do you think?" A cold chill ran up Virginia's spine. She smooth out her apron and did not look the gypsy in the eyes. No one spoke for a few moments and since the girl was making no attempt to excuse herself, Magda saw this as an oppurtunity to engage her as a new customer for her unique talents.

"Would you like me do a reading for you, pretty young lady?"

Virginia without looking up stammered out with, "Oh, I don't know if I should. I mean, I never have and,..." she struggled for words that would not accidently offend the gypsy. "Well, you see, I do not think I could afford your services, madam."

"There is no fee for the first time, young lady. How can you not afford that?" Magda knew that Virginia would accept. She knew that the girl was afraid of her and would not turn her down out of fear alone.

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Laura Collins could detect that there was the presence of a supernatural force somewhere in the great house itself! She could do so because she herself was in fact a supernatural being. She was a phoenix. She was not the only one of her kind, but there were not too many like her, and she was not the usual kind of being that mortals ever encountered, such as witches and ghosts.

She had been created by the Egyptian God of the Sun, Ra. Her soul was the pure essence of the divine fires. She was immortal, but not physically indestructible. In fact her immortality rested on her willingness to physically destroy herself in divine flames in each of her endless lifetimes. Why had Ra chosen to do this? Ra was not accustomed to answering humanity's pleas of why. He was a divine authority and not an intercessor.

Laura quietly made her way to what she sensed was the exact location of this "power" that was in the house. She found herself outside of Quentin Collins' doorway. She heard his favorite song playing through the door so she knew he was in the room. Quentin played the same song whether he was happy or sad so she knew not what his mood would be as her soft hand rapped gently upon the wood.

Quentin opened the door and was smiling when he saw who his visitor was. "Why, Mrs. Collins. What a pleasant surprise! And what may I do for you this fine day?" He smiled wickedly with an obvious gleam of lust in his eyes as he shamefully gazed at his brother's wife.

Laura spoke boldly and without hesitation. "As I can recall, I do not believe I have been for a visit to your quarters for quite some time now. I did not want you to think I was avoiding you, so to correct my oversight here I am brother-in-law."

Quentin stepped back and threw his left arm out in welcome to her. She gladly entered the room. He shut the door a little harder then necessary to check her reaction. She only glanced back over her shoulder with a wry smile in his direction as she began to take in all the details of the room.

"Would you care for a brandy?"

She carefully touched an item on the mantlepiece. "Why yes, that would be nice. You will join me, I trust?"

"In any venture, dear sister-in-law. Any whatsoever." He handed her her drink and she toasted to his good health. Laura began to walk towards the heavily curtained window when her eyes fell across the box back in the shadow of the corner right behind the foyer door. She knew in an instant that this was the source of the presence!

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Virginia had chosen for Magda to look into the crystal ball to tell her future. She did not like the cards. Her father had played cards and she could not abide cards of any kind for the association she felt for his abusive treatments in her past. He was wholly evil in her mind, so all cards must be as well. Although she feared the crystal ball she had had nothing like it in her previous experience, so it only provided her with a fear of the unknown. That was something she could face.

Magda had had no real intention of telling the girl anything of real value so when the images of herself with Virginia appeared she was quite unprepared for it all. And when the scene played out before her eyes and the true horror of what she witnessed came to light she did nothing to mask her own features of horror! She screamed in anguish as she proclaimed, "YOU MUST LEAVE THIS PLACE AND NOT RETURN! If you stay it will mean your DEATH! It could be the DEATH OF US ALL!"

Virginia spoke back in anger, forgetting that she greatly feared this woman. "No! You are lying! You are making it ALL up!" She moved away from the table and backed up into her bed where she lost her footing and fell back upon it. She screamed as she lost her balance, and quickly regained her stance as she held onto the tall bedpost for support. "I won't listen to you! I don't believe you! I DON'T BELIEVE YOU!" She screamed out her last words at the gypsy as she ran tearfully from her own room!

Magda sat there in a strange stony silence. She covered the crystal ball with a black silk scarf as she thought to herself. "I know what I saw. That box. That EVIL BOX! I know what it is! But," and here she stopped short in her thoughts for a moment before she resumed. "I do not know WHERE it is!" She knew she must somehow get a message to Edith Collins. The governess must be dismissed immediately! And she had to hurry for Edith was leaving for Europe this very minute!

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The head of staff at Collinwood assured Magda that he would personally see that the mistress of the house would receive her most urgent message. Jenson was the picture of complete politeness and servitude as he graciously escorted the gypsy woman to the front entrance. He assured her that he would not forget, and bade her thanks for her concern and continued support of the Collins family. As he closed the door and turned to return to his more pressing duties he actually spoke outloud as he shook his head, "What utter nonsense!" No message was ever delivered.

Dark Shadows is a Dan Curtis Production.